NDAA bill includes biggest military pay raise in 5 years:

WASHINGTON — Troops would get their biggest pay raise in years under the final version of Congress’ annual defense policy bill unveiled Tuesday. The 2.1-percent increase included in the National Defense Authorization Act would break a five-year trend of raises that have fallen below the private sector. The higher pay would go into effect Jan. 1 if the bill is passed by Congress and it could receive an initial vote in the House on Friday. The massive $618.7 billion policy bill also includes $3.2 billion to boost troop numbers and bolster Marine Corps and Air Force aviation, a military health care overhaul and a requirement to study whether women should be included in the military draft. The NDAA was hashed out during months of negotiations between the House and Senate, which had disagreed about an $18-billion spending hike for the military. The proposal was pared down in th...